“Yes, I’m locked in someone’s business establishment,” a woman reported. “I don’t hear anybody. The music went off. The door is locked and his car is gone.”

The call came at about 6 p.m. on Aug. 5th from the Hwa Tow Acupuncture and Chinese Herbs Clinic.

Operator: “Are you a patient?”
Caller: “Yes. I was in the middle of a treatment. All of the sudden, I saw him running out for someone to come. I ended up pulling the needles out.

Yes, they forgot about her. There were only two people in the establishment. I suppose this could happen in any business but to be left with needles stuck in you makes things CONSIDERABLY worse. The establishment has no other negative reports and another patient quoted will continue to visit. The Dr. was very embarrassed and apologetic. It was a mistake.

Post navigation

5 comments for “Left in a prickly situation at the acupuncturist”

YetAnoutherBrian

August 26, 2013 at 10:21 AM

Last year is was suffering from intense lower back pain. I was going to a physical therapist to work on back mobilization after the first cortisone shot. Now this was a proper sports medicine rehab, or so I thought. It was suggested that I try something called Dry Needling.

I was aware that acupuncture is bunk, but when I asked how needling works the explanation sounded plausible. I asked if any randomized controlled trials had been done and was assured they had been. An appointment was set and I was assured that they would print out some literature for me to read.

I should have done my own research. When I got to the appointment, the therapist noted that they had only found one study that had been performed and gave me a print out. Funny thing about pain, it is hard to think straight. I had the procedure and it was not pleasant. I was assured that the pain would subside and I would feel better. I said at the time that if you make me feel significantly worse then any improvement will be seen as benefit due to the procedure. The study they printed was worthless and the pain did not go away. I ended up having two more cortisone injections (which also involved some woo) before i got an MRI. The MRI showed I had a ruptured disk and the spinal canal was 75% filled with disk fluid, no amount of cortisone or needling was going to help. After back surgery, I felt immediate relief from pain, science for the win. For post surgery rehab I went to a different therapist.

One Eyed Jack

August 26, 2013 at 11:41 AM

@YAB

Sadly, the major US and international health organizations (WHO, NIH, AMA, FDA) passively endorse acupuncture by not opposing it. None of those organizations endorse its use, but they also don’t prohibit it. So long as major medical organizations don’t oppose it, and insurance companies continue to pay for it, acupuncture will thrive.

YetAnoutherBrian

August 27, 2013 at 10:35 AM

@OEJ After that encounter I really dug into both dry needling and acupuncture, even a basic Google search yields a multitude of sources saying acupuncture is a placebo at best.. The jury is still out on Dry Needling. The last review study I read says that currently there is no data to support or refute it’s efficacy. Having had it though, I am feel it does not work.

Mostly it taught me if something smells fishy then refuse the treatment till you learn more. When you are in pain you are more vulnerable and need to be extra aware and cautious.